|
Advice
12 Lowell Road
Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts
Mr. Michael O'Farrell
Deerfield Academy
South Deerfield, Massachusetts
November 19, 1932
Dear Mike,
I received your letter yesterday and wanted to take just a little time to think before I gave you the advice you requested.
I was just a little bit older than you are when I made the decision to try my luck in professional baseball. In those days, we were not scouted nearly as thoroughly as talented young ballplayers are today. Nor did colleges and universities pursue athletic talent the way they have begun to recently. I can only imagine what the pressure feels like to you right now, which is why I want to help you in any way I can.
I can honestly tell you that you are highly regarded as a pitcher by several major league teams, based on the conversations I have had with a number of men who are involved in evaluating talent. They have asked me, as casually as they can, about your plans for next year, and I have honestly replied that you are still making up your mind. It would not surprise me in the least if, as soon as you turn eighteen, major league teams begin to offer you financial incentive to decide in their favor.
On the other hand, our family has always valued education very highly. While I did not graduate from Amherst, I spent several winters attending classes there, and I believe the education I received there—both in the classroom and outside it—to be well worth the time and effort I expended in its acquisition. Your mother, too, values the time she spent at Mount Holyoke very highly, and you are aware of how enriching Beth finds the experience to be. Grandpa made me promise to pursue my education while I tried my hand at professional ball, and while I would not require you to make a similar promise, I would encourage you to do so if you decide to pursue a professional baseball career.
Attending Notre Dame would enable you to continue playing football, a sport I know you love, as well as baseball. I’m sure you are aware of the number of major league players who first honed their skills as collegians; among my teammates, Lou Gehrig, Christy Mathewson, and Bill Carrigan come to mind. I know Matty played football with distinction at Bucknell, and I am fairly sure Lou tried his hand at the sport while he was at Columbia, too.
Your mother and I have raised you and your brothers and sisters to trust your own minds and hearts, and I know you will finally make this decision on your own. However, if I were you, son, I would accept the offer Notre Dame is making to you first. Attending and playing for Notre Dame does not eliminate your chances of a career in professional baseball, if it is what you eventually desire; it only opens a greater number of possibilities up for you, both inside and outside the world of sports. I will, of course, support you completely in whatever decision you make, but since you asked my advice, I owe it to you to give it in as frank a manner as possible.
I must close this letter now, as we need to try to reach Beth on the telephone while she is between classes. Today is her twentieth birthday, you know!
Take care of yourself, keep studying, and we shall see you at Thanksgiving.
Love,
Dad
|